


One Who Cries

by kat_hollifield13



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-30
Updated: 2016-01-28
Packaged: 2017-12-13 10:27:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 15,549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/823240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kat_hollifield13/pseuds/kat_hollifield13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of how the Avengers became one big group of daddies (plus Natasha)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

A small child, with tangled brown hair, stood solemnly in the elevator. The man standing next to her had placed a hand on the back of her shoulders to lead her inside, and had not removed it since the doors had dinged closed. Perhaps as an attempt to provide her comfort; perhaps to assure himself of her presence.

In the child’s hands she held a small aged suitcase and a damaged, vintage, John Wayne tin lunchbox. A heavy feeling settled hard inside the child’s chest and she held her arms just a bit harder to her body. She recognized the feeling, fear.

Agent Phil Coulson glanced down at the top of the girl’s head, feeling her suppressed shudder. He thought about smiling to reassure the child, but she stared steadfastly at the bottom of the elevator doors. Inwardly he sighed.

_ ::Earlier That Morning:: _

Coulson had only been slightly surprised when he received the contents of the debriefing he was to give that morning. Though, he knew not as surprised as the original recipient of the news.

Entering a large room in the Avengers Tower, he was unsurprised to find one Captain America nervously pacing behind the seated team. Coulson waved a hand in a dismissing motion, “There is no national emergency, Captain.”

Steve frowned, “Then why assemble the team? The message said urgent.”

“I’m getting to that. SHIELD has received information, and it is our belief that it will most likely affect the Avengers as a whole.” Coulson answered, taking position at the head of the rounded table.

“Then shouldn’t Tony be here?” Bruce asked from the right.

Coulson shrugged, “Director Fury debriefed Stark in person, when we had confirmed the information.”

“Fury? In person? What did Stark do?” Clint asked incredulously.

The team quieted, “Stark had a daughter.”

And there was the bombshell of why he was here. While he let the team absorb the news, and let pass their various responses, he pulled up some files into the holographic settings in the table.

He brought up a picture of the girl for the team to see, tangled brown hair and large brown eyes staring solemnly into the camera. After a moment, it was Natasha that spoke first, “Those are definitely Stark’s eyes. Dark circles included.”

“She looks just like him.” Steve said breathlessly as he sat down in his seat.

“She seems to be around 6-7 years old, why hasn’t Tony been contacted before this?” Bruce asked a frown creasing his brow.

“I believe that to be the workings of her grandfather, Arthur Devereux II.” More photos were pulled up, “It looks like he was a very controlling man and did his best to keep his granddaughters birth a secret since it was out of wedlock.

Stark’s daughter is Toni “Cha’Kwaina” Devereux, 7 years old. Her biological grandmother belonged to the Hopi tribe making her qualify for government benefits. Her mother, Yvone Devereux, was an upcoming French model. Both Arthur and Yvone were recently killed in a car crash leaving Stark’s daughter with no living relatives until their lawyer found some documents left behind by her mother. She’s been in SHIELD custody undergoing psych evaluations since Tuesday.”

That was four days ago.

Now it was time for her to actually see her new home.


	2. Chapter 2

When the elevator opened into Tony's workshop Coulson pushed the girl in and quickly escaped back inside. The child gulped and looked around her but saw no sign of anyone else. Tiptoeing forward she crouched down to set her luggage on the floor. As she did she heard some clattering and a loud voice ordering around a 'Dummy' and 'You'.

Getting up from the floor Tony Stark sets about putting his tools back into order, making sure everything is in its place. He wonders what's taking so long before he turns around and is greeted by the sight of his daughter for the first time.

She's crouching, hands still clenched around the handles of a small suitcase and lunchbox. Slowly she lets them go and straightens. Both of them are silent for a while and the little girl picks at the hem of her faded yellow shirt.

Tony approaches the girl, slowly because she's still refusing to look up, and sits down in front of her. "Hi there." He says as he leans down to meet her gaze.

She looks up shyly and nods her greeting. Switching tactics Tony introduces himself, "I'm Tony Stark. I hear we have the same name."

She nods again, "My names Toni."

"Do you know who I am?" Tony asked nervously, he doesn't think he knows how to explain it himself.

Toni nodded, "You're my father."

"I don't know what anyone has told you about me-"

"Mommy said a lot of things about you."

She was looking at him now and Tony ran a hand through his hair. Was he going to have to undo one woman's lifelong lectures of hate?

Toni looked away again, "Mommy knew how to use words to hurt."

'Oh,' Tony tamped down the urge to throw something. He had known what to expect, but still, hearing and seeing it with his own eyes…it was a tough pill to swallow. "It's good you figured that out."

"You don't have to be angry. Mommy was really sick." Toni said quietly, "I know this isn't the ideal situation for you, and just so you know, you don't have to keep me if you don't want to."

A lump formed in Tony's throat, "What?"

"The reservation where Granma lived has offered to take me in." Toni shrugged. "They can find a family…"

"No, nononono, you don't need to worry about any of that. You're welcome here kiddo."

"Oh," Toni looked down again and wrung her hands. "Thank you."

'Back to square one,' Tony thought. "So, Cha'Kwaina, huh? What's that about?"

Startled little Toni looked up and after a moment shrugged, "It's my Native American name. It means One Who Cries. Granma said it suited me. The medicine man gave it to me."

Nodding Tony pulled himself out of his chair and began a walk across the room, "So are you thirsty or anything? What would you like, a soda?"

Toni stared after him and followed slowly, "Soda's fine."

Tony popped open two cans of Dr Pepper and handed one to her. Leading her over to a couch they sat down on opposite sides. "So," Tony started, "Tell me about yourself."

This seemed to boggle the young girls mind and she struggled for words.

"Ok, let's make this easier; tell me about your mom." As he said this he pulled up a computer screen with a picture of her mother. Toni stared at the screen as it swung through the air in wonder.

"She was going to be a famous model before I was born." A well-practiced line. "After I was born she turned to the drink and then she got into drugs. She was pretty cranky when she wasn't high." Her gaze wandered to the can she was currently rolling between her hands. "You're Iron Man aren't you?"

Changing the topic, as to be expected. "Yeah, I am."

Toni looked around her, avoiding his eyes. "You save people?"

"I try." Tony answered.

She looked up at him with a sincere smile, "That's wonderful."


	3. Chapter 3

The best Tony can do is throw together one of the guest bedrooms closest to his. Give him time and it’ll be fit for a princess. But for the moment, monochromes and plain furniture is what he has to offer.

She loves it.

It takes him by surprise and he has to think, what on earth was her bedroom like before for her to be excited by this?

Toni excitedly scrambles onto the bed and exclaims, “This bed could fit my whole old room in it!”

She says it lightheartedly but it still makes something in Tony’s stomach twist. He shakes off thee feeling with a shrug of his shoulders and motions to the suitcase in his hand. “You want me to put these up for you?”

Toni ambles off the bed, “I can do it.”

She takes the suitcase from his hand and sits in front of the chest of drawers across from her bed. She opens the case and from where he stands Tony can see that she packed in a rush, shoving everything in at once.

Toni is careful and meticulous, re-folding each set of clothing she pulls from the case. The clothes are worn and faded, mostly t-shirts and shorts and one stained sundress she treats reverently. When everything is put away and Tony has shown her where to place her toothbrush, they both come back to sit on the bed.

Tony points to the lunchbox, “You a fan of the Duke?”

Toni nods excitedly, “He’s my favorite actor, I’ve seen almost all his movies, though some of them are sad. The box is vintage, I found it in the thrift store. The lady working there said I was so well behaved she gave it to me for free.”

“That’s great. So what do you keep in it?” Tony asked curiously.

“My treasures.” Toni answered sliding the box into Tony’s lap and leaning into his side.

Tony had to pause for a moment for this was the first time Toni had actually touched him. Slowly he opened the lid of the box. The first thing he saw was the snake skin. That gave him a few clues to his daughter’s personality. It would seem she wasn’t going to be the ‘princess’ type he assumed.

Under the snake skin were a few rocks, some arrow heads, some interesting buttons, some coins, a few feathers and what looked like half a jaw bone of some small carnivore. Well, she did grow up in Texas so he shouldn’t be surprised.

He had a child raised in the sticks. He didn’t think he’d ever spent any time _in_ the sticks. _Ever_.

How was he supposed to keep this child happy in New York of all places?

He managed a grin and shut the box. “These are wonderful Toni.”

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Toni stared up at her father and studied his face while he was concentrating on her box. He was sad. But she couldn’t put her finger on why. He was hiding it pretty well but still, she could tell.

She hated that. She was making everyone around her sad. It was all her fault.

There was a knock on the door loud enough to make her jump and her daddy swear. He was up on his feet and cracking open the door in a heartbeat. There were harsh whispers that Toni couldn’t make out and she couldn’t see who was beyond the door.

Eventually Tony came back to the bed and looked at his daughter. “Toni, you know about me being Iron Man, do you know about the Avengers?”

“I remember the attack on Manhattan reported on the news.” Toni could vaguely recall the group of superheroes the news people talked about.

“Well, the truth is they all live here in this building with us, and they are dying to meet you…are you ok with that?” Her daddy looked nervous as she felt.

“Ok.” She answered. She didn’t want to find out what would happen if she said no here. “Why do they want to meet _me_?”

Tony looked surprised at the question. “Well because…because you’re their new roommate and my daughter and stuff. They just have been dying to meet you since they heard about you.”

“Oh. Ok.” That was unnerving. No one had ever been _excited_ to meet her before.

Tony took her hand and led her out of the room and into the elevator at the end of the hall. It takes them up two floors. When they step out into another hallway she can hear the sound of people talking. They follow the sound until they step into a large living area with attached kitchen and dining area.

There are five people standing around one end of a giant curved couch. They have all stopped talking and are now staring at Toni. She shifts uncomfortably under the scrutiny and scuffs her toe on the stone floor.

The first to move is a giant man with long blond hair and a booming voice, “Greetings daughter of Stark!”

 


	4. Chapter 4

Toni looked like a deer in the headlights. Thor continued, “It is with great honor that I welcome you to your new home! We have awaited your return from SHIELD with much anxiousness. We must celebrate!”

Clint stepped forward slightly, enough to elbow Thor in the side, “The bear Thor, give her the bear.” He whispered.

“Oh yes!” Thor turned to the couch and produced a giant stuffed teddy bear, wrapped in a large red ribbon, the entire thing almost overwhelming the child in its size. “We have come together to bring you this gift with hope it brings you great joy.”

Thor practically dumped the bear into Toni’s arms and she held it with a little difficulty, “I-it’s lovely. Thank you, um-”

“The loud one is Thor.” Tony said picking her up to sit on his hip, bear and all, “And that guy is Clint Barton.”

He went on this way until he had introduced all the Avengers in turn. Then he looked at Toni, “So I did hear someone mention a feast, are you hungry?”

Toni shrugged and then nodded a bit. Grinning Tony swung around to face the group, “Well how does that sound to everyone? A celebratory, welcome home party I think is in order for the little princess.”

To this they all agreed.

Tony moved over to the bar and sat Toni on top of it. The little girl fiddled with the bow around the teddy bears neck.

-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-

Toni decides to name the bear Asta. When asked by the man named Steve why, she tells him about the movie her grandma let her watch. The Thin Man, with Nick and Nora Charles and their trusty dog Asta. Steve has heard of the movie and he seems just as excited about the sequels as she is. She talks to him about movies until the food arrives.

Asta gets to sit on the couch while Toni sits next to her father at a large table. Everyone sits and the food is dished out. There is a lot of chatter that Toni isn’t paying attention to. She’s too focused on the food that’s being piled on her plate. She can scarcely remember a time she’s seen that much food in one place before.

When she says as much, she gets the funny looks again and the atmosphere of the room turns sad. She doesn’t look up from her plate after that. She always makes people sad nowadays, and she doesn’t know how to fix it.

So she ate in silence. Only looking up when a question or comment was directed at her, which there were not many. The group of adults could tell that Toni wasn’t in a talking mood. She ate till she was full and then ate some more. Just in case she didn’t get any more later.

`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`

Toni did her best to hide her yawn but she was very tired after a long day and Tony soon excused the two of them and walked her to her room. Once inside, the little girl changed into a pair of pajamas and crawled into the large bed. Tony watched from the door way and once Toni was settled he came over and sat on the edge of the bed.

The two talked until finally, Toni’s eyes slid shut and she fell asleep. Tony watched for a while and then went back down to his workroom. He felt the need to lose a few hours with his head stuck in an engine, doing thoughtless work.

It hurt to think about Toni too much. The possibilities of what she might have or might have not gone through. But when he sat in front of his work bench he couldn’t bring himself to pick up the tools.

Dummy handed him a wrench.

Tony smiled sadly and patted the robot on its head. He twirled the wrench around his fingers and, well, thought about Toni.


	5. Chapter 5

Toni wakes up in a pool of sweat and a scream stuck in her throat. An image of vivid green eyes still pounding through her head.

All alone in the big empty room she begins to sniffle. She rubs tears out of her eyes and takes a big breath, it comes out a whimper. Toni fights it, shakes her head and rolls to her feet. She makes her way to the door of her room and forgets for a moment where she is when it opens into a long hallway.

‘ _Oh,_ ’ she remembers. This is her father’s home.

She has a father now.

How long had she wished for and dreamed of that. To have a father who could protect her from the darkness and mommy when she got scary. Someone who would let her stand on their toes and dance with her, like she had seen her neighbor Billie do.

She wanted to find him now and say all the things she was too scared to say before. She wanted to hug him and ask all the questions she could think to ask.

Vaguely she remembered that the elevator ride to her room from the room she met her father in was somewhere towards the middle of the building she thought. So she walked to the elevator and once inside stared at the rows and rows of buttons.

Scratching her head she reached up and pressed one that was lower than the floor she was on. The elevator jumped to life and started downward. It opened into another long hallway that was just like the one she had left.

She walked to the end of it, went around a few turns, and felt her frustration begin to rise. Before she knew it she was lost. Suddenly she felt all alone and all the eagerness washed from her body in a cold sweat. This time she couldn’t help it and she started to cry tears of fear and frustration.

She curled up next to the wall and cried into her knees.

Maybe seven minutes pass before the sound of something metal and then a thump catches her attention and she lifts her head.

A man is crouched under a rectangular hole in the wall, a metal grate in his hands. He stands and places the grate over the hole then turns to face her. Toni recognizes him as the man her father had introduced as Clint Barton.

He smiles softly at her and moves forward slowly, as if trying not to startle a frightened animal. “Hey Kiddo.”

Wiping snot from her face she shrugs as form of greeting. Clint moves over to crouch in front of her. “What are you doing up so late?”

“I had a nightmare.” She answers, “I got up to look for daddy but I got lost.”

“Well I can take you to him if it would make you feel better.” Clint offers, holding out his hands to her.

Toni nods and lets Clint pick her up and hold her on his hip. He takes her back to the elevator and asks, “So what was your nightmare about?”

Toni shrugs again, “I don’t remember.”

Clint and Toni chat until the elevator takes them to the correct floor. The doors open to the workshop that Toni remembers from the time she first met her father and Clint walks deeper inside.

The two of them find Tony sound asleep sitting in front of what looks like half an engine. And before she can stop him, Clint solidly kicks the chair Tony is sitting on. Toni gasps and puts a finger in her mouth, something her mommy surely would have smacked her for, but the habit never really went away.

Tony curses Clint and looks up bleary eyed, “Wha-?” He manages.

“I think this belongs to you.” Clint says bouncing Toni in his grip. More softly he says, “She had a nightmare and got lost trying to get here.”

Tony stands, rubs a hand through his hair and yawns, “Toni, you could have just asked Jarvis to get me for you, you didn’t have to come looking.”

Clint hands Toni over carefully and Toni asks, “Who’s Jarvis?”


	6. Chapter 6

“W-who’s- Did I not introduce the two of you?” Tony asks aghast.

Clint rolls his eyes and excuses himself, ruffling Toni’s hair on the way out. Tony swings Toni around and jumps into a long explanation of mechanics and how he created Jarvis and the first time they spoke and what his name stands for.

Most of it goes over Toni’s head but she likes to listen to her daddy talk. She likes the way he looks right now, with excitement instead of sadness in his eyes. He must talk for almost thirty minutes, and by the time he slows down Toni’s eyes are getting droopy.

“Sir, as much as I am enjoying our little journey back in time, I believe it is far past Miss Stark’s bedtime.” A new voice disrupts the constant rumble of her father’s voice.

“Who’ssat?” Toni slurred.

Tony looks down and notices his daughter’s sleepiness, he chuckles. “That would be Jarvis.”

This perks up Toni who looks around herself. Tony stands and walks to the elevator. “But you can meet him in the morning, right now it’s time for bed.”

“What if I have another nightmare?” Toni asks watching more closely as he presses buttons in the elevator.

“If you have a nightmare, just yell for me and I’ll come running.”

`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`

True to his promise Tony fully introduces Jarvis and Toni the next morning before breakfast. It’ll be many days before anyone can convince her he is not a ghost.

Bruce and Steve are at the breakfast table when the two Tony’s join them. Tony immediately gravitates to the coffee while Bruce insists that Toni eat a real breakfast.

Toni insists she help Bruce cook, “I always made my own breakfast at home.” She says.

Bruce smiles down at her as she scoots a chair closer to the oven. He shoots a glance over at Tony and Steve and shrugs. Toni ends up handing ingredients to Bruce as he cooks.

“You cook fast…it always takes me a while.” Toni says not taking her eyes off the frying pan.

“I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it eventually.” Bruce reassures, placing bacon into the pan next to the eggs.

When it is finished, Bruce lays everything out on a plate and walks it to the table, expecting Toni to follow him.

What no one expects is the crash and scream that follows. Bruce, Tony, and Steve rush to Toni’s side to see her little burnt hands. Steve grabs an oven-mitt and picks up the frying pan from the floor where it landed after Toni’s aborted attempt to lift it.

Tony panics and Bruce lifts the sobbing girl onto the counter and places her hands in the sink to run cold water over them. Toni calms a lot quicker than any of them expects.

“I’m sorry.” She says.

“It’s ok little princess, you didn’t do anything wrong.” Tony says from behind Bruce.

Bruce examines her hands closely, “I know it hurt a lot but you’re really ok. There’s barely a mark left.”

“I-I scared myself, that’s why I cried so much. I didn’t mean to scare you all.” Toni says sheepishly sniffling a little. “I shouldn’t have forgotten the oven-mitts.”

“It would have scared anyone.” Steve says.

Toni flexes her hands and blushes, “I’m sorry.”

Sighing in relief Tony picks up the girl and takes her to her seat at the breakfast table. “Well that’s a sure fire way to wake a person up.”

“Agreed.” Bruce says as he takes a seat as well.

Steve stands by the counter drinking coffee and the three men watch Toni eat with her strange enthusiasm.

Later that day Tony decides it’s time to call Pepper.


	7. Chapter 7

She supposes that she always expected something like this to happen. It wouldn’t be the first time Pepper had fought off women claiming to have mothered Tony’s child.

She never expected _this_ though.

Tony hadn’t talked to her much ever since the breakup. And when he finally calls her, the conversation goes somewhat like ‘Oh didn’t I tell you, I have a daughter now.’

Typical.

So she meets with Tony in his lab, “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“I’ve only known for a week.” Tony defends.

“You should have called me as soon as you found out. You didn’t even have a room ready for her. I could have made preparations.” Pepper paces, hands on hips.

Tony smiles at that, “Yeah I bet you would have.” He says softly.

“So you want me to take her shopping? Why don’t you take her yourself?”

“What do you think will happen if I step outside with her right now?” Tony asks tightly.

Pepper rubs a hand over her forehead, “The media will have a field day.”

She can understand why Tony would want to keep her out of the public eye for as long as possible. As soon as the media finds out, so does all his enemies. That’s the danger of being around Tony.

“Listen I just want you to take her shopping, let her pick out some clothes and things she likes.” Tony asks a slight pleading note entering his voice.

“I don’t have time today I have meetings to go to-”

The elevator dings.

Out walks a miniature version of the man sitting in front of her.

Pepper stands then leans down to the child’s level, holding out a hand. “You must be Miss Stark, I’m Pepper Potts.”

Toni blushes and gently shakes her hand, “Please, call me Toni.”

Peppers heart melts.

She notices Happy Hogan, who had wisely stayed out of the conversation, wipe a tear from his eye and clap Tony on the shoulder before Tony swatted him away.

Toni gets introduced to Happy too. Then Tony picks her up to sit on his hip. “Little princess, Pepper is going to take you shopping today.”

“For what?” Toni asks index finger trailing to her mouth.

Tony gently removes the finger, “Clothes and whatever else you want. I want you to get whatever you want you got that?”

Toni looks shell shocked and then blushes, “Oh no, I could never do that.”

“Yes you can, and you will.” Tony sets her down and hands her hand to Pepper.

Pepper takes the hand and leads Toni back to the elevator followed by Happy. The three wave to Tony as the doors close.

`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`.`

Pepper finds out quickly that getting Toni to actually pick out clothes is a much bigger task than she ever thought possible.

Toni, apparently, is a penny-pincher.

One look at the price tag has her paling. “Miss Pepper can we just go to the Goodwill? That’s where I get all my clothes.”

Pepper shakes her head, “Toni don’t worry about the prices. We can afford it I promise.”

Toni delicately lifts out a sunflower yellow sundress and finds the price tag. “But mommy never spent this much.”

Pepper sighs sadly and picks up the dress, “Honey, listen, this day is all about you. You can get whatever you want. _There is no price tag_.”

It takes a bit more nudging but soon Toni starts trying on clothes and the basket fills up slowly but surely with more dresses and shorts and shirts and one floppy felt sunhat. Toni comes out of the shoe store with four pairs of shoes.

The toy store is a disaster. Tony refuses to buy anything until Happy tempts her with the stuffed animals. A horse, a wolf, and a dolphin get put in the cart before Pepper deems it enough to go home with.

The three of them, since Toni insisted on helping carry things, tote the bags to the elevator and ride up to the floor her bedroom sits on, the same as Tony’s.

“So how did things go?” Tony asks from the bedroom doorway.

Pepper is in the middle of packing everything away in the closet and chest of drawers while Happy is sitting on the bed with Toni.

“I think things went well for a first try.” Pepper says thoughtfully.


	8. Scars

Toni insists on trying on all her new outfits for Tony. She twirls and Tony applause's. Steve and Pepper watch from the doorway.

_‘She’ll be good for him.’_ Pepper thinks as Steve walks her to the elevator.

Toni is trying on her last dress, her favorite from what Tony can tell. She turns around and kneels next to the bags and begins to dig in them, searching for her new toys to show him when he notices it. Peeking out from under her right shoulder blade is a scar.

From his seat on the end of the bed he reaches forward to pull down the back of her dress to see it better. The scar is long and thin with a square shape toward the end. “Toni, where did you get this?” He asks, a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Toni looks over her shoulder at him and then down towards the scar. Her expression darkens and she turns away, shoulders slumped, “It was my fault.” She says as if it answers everything.

Fear starts to creep up Tony's spine and he takes her by the arms and pulls her into his lap. “Toni, it’s ok to tell me anything, you know that right?” Toni doesn’t look up at him but instead stares at his chest, at the soft glow of the arc reactor under his shirt.

“How’d you get that?” She deflects.

“That’s changing the subject.” Tony frowns.

“I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.” She says feeling around the edge of it.

It’s a fair enough trade so Tony begins by telling her about Obadiah. Then he goes on to his kidnapping and time held as a hostage, ghosting over certain details so not to frighten her. He even tells her about how it made him very sick and he fixed it thanks to his dad’s clues. How it powers his suit and himself.

Toni is pressed against his chest, head tucked under his chin by the time he is finished. She’s found the paper tag still attached to her dress and has been folding it over and over until it nearly came off. Now she does rip it off and crushes it in her hand to make a ball.

She sighs a little, “I set the fire alarm off.”

Confused Tony looks down at her face, she refuses to meet his gaze. “What?”

“When I was four,” Toni starts again, “I tried to make dinner one night and set the fire alarm off while Mama was trying to sleep.” Toni reaches over her shoulder and fingers one end of the scar. “Mama got real mad and took after me with the belt. Granma got real mad when she found out and Mama never used it again.”

The air is sucked from Tony’s lungs and he looks in horror at the scar again. Now he can make out the outline of a belt buckle, the long edge of the belt itself. How much force would the woman have had to use to create a scar like that? What would the bruises have been like?

“I just should have been better…and paid closer attention.” Toni says sadly.

Tony hugs her suddenly and fiercely, “Listen to me Toni. _It wasn’t your fault._ You were a _baby_. You didn’t _deserve_ that, you hear me? No one _ever_ has the right to lay a hand on you. Do you understand?”

Toni hesitates before she hugs her dad back, “I- I think so. Thank you Daddy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to apologize for being absent so long. I've been going through a lot and haven't written or even read a thing since my last update nearly a year ago. I've spent some time in the hospital and I'm trying to get better. Thank you for sticking with me and I hope you continue to like this story. I still have so many plans for it.


	9. Chapter 9

Steve thumped his head against the wall, standing next to the door of Toni’s room. Toni’s little voice still ringing in his ears. How could any _mother…_?

He turned around and went back to the elevator, retreating to the common rooms kitchen. He immediately set to work making a pot of coffee the way he knew Tony liked. Sure enough, Tony came in with a dark expression just as the pot was beginning to fill.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Steve asked with his arms crossed.

Tony huffed, “She was right, you were there.”

At Steve’s questioning look Tony shrugged, “Princess just asked all the sudden if you were ok in the middle of putting her to bed. She said that you had gone away suddenly.”

“How did she know that? I was sure neither of you knew I was there.” Steve inquired.

Tony leaned against the counter and shook his head, “Hell if I know. I’d’ ‘ve had no clue if it wasn’t for her. Why were you eves dropping anyways?”

Steve looked sheepish, “I didn’t mean to…at first.”

Tony nodded and they sat in the quiet until the coffee maker cut off. Steve poured two cups and handed one to Tony who blinked in surprise. “You never answered my question.” Steve commented.

Tony sighed over his cup, “I don’t know how. I mean, what is there to discuss? She’s been treated like…she’s gone through so much and I just-” He paused a moment to rub at his forehead, “ _How did I not know?_ ”

“You _couldn’t_ have. There is _no way_ you could have known Tony.” Steve insisted.

“Part of me knows that but part of me just feels like I should have. How am I ever going to make up to that child…everything?” Tony pondered.

Steve thought for a moment and offered, “I think you’re doing fine as it is. You can’t make her forget…but you can make it to where she looks forward to the future instead.”

The corner of Tony’s mouth quirked up, “Thanks Cap.”

XKXKXKXKXKX

Toni was floating. The last thing she could remember was talking to her dad and then…oh right, she was asleep. At least she thought she was. She couldn’t tell, her mind was too fuzzy. She did know that she was surrounded by stars and floating rocks.

Then she was standing. Rocks crumbled beneath her feet as she explored her surroundings. Rounding the edge of a large boulder she found a man with long black hair slumped over on his knees. She was hit with a blast of emotion so strong it took her a minute to catch her breath. Despair and fury rolled of the man in waves, his sadness pulling tears from Toni’s eyes. She clutched her chest, trying to calm the furious beating of her heart.

She almost didn’t hear the man start to scream. His voice froze the marrow of her bones and she felt herself grow weak. The man screamed as his body lent forward with the force of it, until finally his forehead touched the ground. He’s scream turned to wails then, so heartbreaking that Toni wailed herself. The man whipped around at the noise and raised his arms to attack, livid green eyes burning with tears and so much anger. Toni screamed then and woke from her dream, missing the look of confusion the man shot her as he got over his shock.

Toni shot up in bed drenched in sweat. The dim light in the room brightened a tad and a voice resonated in the room, “Miss Stark, would you like me to alert your father that you have had another nightmare?” JARVIS asked gently.

Wiping her eyes Toni shook her head, “No, thank you. I just need a glass of water.”

Toni slipped from her bed and walked to the bathroom, lights turning on automatically for her. Using a step stool she climbed up to the sink and filled a paper cup with water. Hopping back down she walked back over to the bed and set her half empty cup on the bedside table. She opened the drawer she found there and was happily surprised to find pen and paper.

She soon found herself seated at the mostly unused desk seated in front of the large windows on the left side of the room. Then she began to draw, scribbling with the pen to form what she hoped was a fair representation of the man from her dreams. She hoped this way she would remember the dream and be able to recognize him if she saw him later.

It had happened before so she wouldn’t be surprised.

She scribbled until the pen ran out of ink and the sun was just coming over the horizon. She was about to fall asleep watching the sunrise when a knock at the door surprised her. It was dad. She scrambled to put her papers in order and stuff them into a drawer as he entered the room. “Morning Princess!”

“Mornin’.” She called back over her shoulder.

Tony sidled up to her side and placed a hand on the back of her chair. “So, JARVIS tells me that you didn’t get much sleep. Have another nightmare?”

Toni nodded sheepishly, “Yeah, but it wasn’t as bad as the others. This one was just…sad. I dealt with it.”

“You know you can come to me any time, right? No matter how bad or silly or sad your nightmare is, I’d like to be there to help you with it.” Tony said spinning the chair around so he could get eye level with her.

Toni nodded and gave him a lopsided grin, deciding to show him one of her many drawing she had done over the night. Tony looked over the drawing and grinned back at her. It was of space with floating asteroids and it had been done in ballpoint pen. So it was mostly scribbles, for a seven year old it was pretty decent. “I didn’t know you liked to do art. You should have told me. I’ll buy you some art supplies.” Tony proclaimed enthusiastically.

Toni looked mildly uncomfortable, “Are you sure? I’m fine with just some pencils and paper…and a good eraser.”

Tony stood and ruffled her hair, “For you kid? The sky’s not even a limit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everybody for being so patient and for the wonderful comments I have received. I'm doing my best to get better and start writing again. I really hope you like this chapter, there are a lot of hints to the future of this fic.


	10. Chapter 10

Toni’s nightmares persist. 

Jarvis keeps a record of each one and Tony begins to get more and more worried about them as each day passes. To keep her from spending all of her time in her room, Tony invites her into the workshop. 

From then on Toni is at her father’s heels; always watching closely as he works. Tony sets her up her own little section in the workshop where her art supplies ends up scattered about a little easel. 

Sometimes she will sit by his side and ask questions about what he is doing. She doesn’t understand all the intricacies of mechanics, but she likes to listen to his voice. 

They take breaks together, and when she gets tired she naps on the couch against the wall, using the bear the Avengers gave her as a pillow. 

They get visitors every now and then; Bruce and Steve mostly. They like to check and make sure that the Stark duo is taking care of themselves. Bruce will sometimes bring his own work and talk to Tony about some problem or theory he’s working on. Steve makes sure Tony doesn’t lose track of time and gets Toni to bed on time. 

Dinner is really the only time the rest of the Avengers see either Starks for the next few days. Just after one of these meetings, while the dishes are being put away, something Clint mentions to Natasha perks Toni’s interest. 

_Outside._

She doesn’t say anything at first, but she can’t get it off her mind throughout her bedtime routine. While Tony is tucking her in, she looks up at him and asks quietly, “When can I go outside?” 

Tony freezes, his daughters question and its consequences bouncing around in his skull. How could he let her outside? He couldn’t take her anywhere; the media would have a field day. How could he expect her to have a healthy childhood hidden away indoors? Could he let her go with someone else? 

This was something that he had been avoiding thinking about since they had been brought together. Toni sits up and puts a hand on his arm. “It’ll be ok, Daddy. You’ll think of something.” 

Tony wraps his arms around her and hugs. “Of course I will, I’m a Stark.” 

Toni smiles back at him and finally goes to bed. She’ll be up in a few hours but for now Tony sits next to her bed and plans. 

\---

Natasha looks up from her tablet to eye Tony speculatively. 

“It’ll only be for a few hours.” Tony pleads. 

“You’re asking _me_ because…?” 

“Believe me I looked elsewhere.” Tony deadpans. “But you are the only one available who’s not going to draw attention besides Clint and he’s on a mission.” 

She continues to stare at him until he groans, “She has to stay safe and out of the public eye for a few more weeks. You’re the only one I _trust_ enough to do this.” 

Which is how Natasha finds herself sitting on a park bench in the midday sun watching Toni climb around on a jungle gym at Central Park. There were a few younger children and their guardians there. Toni hasn’t approached any of them and Natasha has no intentions of gossiping with the other women. 

Toni is excited, in her own way, about being outside. According to Stark, Toni spent much of her time outdoors at her old home on the reservation. 

But, Toni’s been quiet and obviously nervous to be around Natasha. She’ll be the first to admit that she’s not the best with children but she can’t pin down on why Toni would be specifically scared of her. 

Toni does a little flip around one of the bars and lands in the gravel. As she is standing to go at it again one of the other women approaches her. Natasha stiffens ready to jump at the slightest sign of foul play but the woman merely leans till she’s eye level with Toni and asks, “Young lady, why aren’t you in school?” 

Toni’s eyes go comically wide as she stares up at the woman, trying to come up with a plausible answer to satisfy her. The woman’s mouth turns down at the corners and she says more forcefully, “Young lady, I asked you a question!” 

Toni steps back like she was slapped and Natasha makes her own move. “Can I help you?” She asks. 

The woman straightens, “Why isn’t this child in school?” 

Natasha removes her sunglasses, “I don’t see how that is any of your business.” 

“Excuse you?” The woman snarls. 

Toni hides herself behind Natasha, little hands clasping her shirt tail. Natasha turns to leave but the woman grabs hold of her arm, “Don’t just walk away from me!” 

Instincts kick in and she begins to defend herself but stops at the last moment. Natasha drops the painful hold on the woman’s arm and turns to Toni. Together they leave the woman seething in the background. 

As they walk Toni keeps glancing up at Natasha until she raises an eyebrow. Toni blushes and wrings her hands, “How are you so brave?” 

Natasha stops and thinks about the question, “I’m not really.” 

“Oh, yes! You were! You didn’t have an ounce of fear inside you when that lady yelled at you.” Toni exclaims. 

“I knew how to defend myself.” Natasha reasoned, “Were you scared of her?” 

Toni nods and looks towards her shoes, “She sounded just like Mama.” 

Natasha feels a stab of anger at Toni’s mother, a woman who she had never met. 

Toni looks up once again and asks, “Could you teach me?” 

Natasha looks down in surprise, “Teach you what?” 

“How to be strong like you.” Toni wraps her arms around herself, “I don’t want to be scared of everything anymore.” 

Natasha thinks about it for a solid minute, then holds a hand out and wiggles her fingers. “I guess I can show you a few things.” 

Toni’s smile lights up her face and she takes Natasha’s hand.


	11. Chapter 11

Toni goes to bed much earlier than usual that night; thoroughly exhausted by the bit of ‘training’ Natasha gave her. Natasha informs Tony on everything that happened and what was said. Tony sighs and rubs his forehead, “Thank you…for everything.” 

Natasha crosses her arms, “If it’s ok with you, I want to continue her training. Nothing over the top but someone in her position could use a little self-defense.” 

Tony nods, “Yeah, ok. I see your point. I’ll talk to her about it tonight.” 

“Nightmares still?” Natasha asks grimly. 

Tony nods, “I don’t know what to do about them. She has them every night and won’t tell me what they’re about. I just don’t understand.” 

Natasha shakes her head, “Just keep being there for her. She’ll tell you when she’s ready.” 

The two part ways and Tony heads down to his workshop. He snoozes on the couch until Toni inevitably comes downstairs, dragging along a horse plushie. She climbs up onto the couch with him. Tony wraps her up in his arms and watches as she falls back to sleep. He soon joins her and that is how Steve finds them. 

He places a file Pepper sent him with on Tony’s work bench and stealthily pulls out his phone. Opening the camera feature he snaps a quick picture and puts the phone away. He watches them for a while and then leaves without either of the sleeping Stark’s knowing he had been there. 

XKXKXKXKXKXKXKX

The next morning Tony spends the time before breakfast watching Toni show off the punch and kick Natasha had shown her. She excitedly explains the nuances of the maneuver. When she finally slows down Tony kneels down to her level. 

“I’m really glad you’re learning this. In fact, Natasha wants to teach you some more. Is that something you would like?” Tony asks. 

“Oh yes!” Toni says bringing her hands together. 

Tony chuckles and ruffles her hair, “Good. Well, there is also something else I wanted to talk to you about.” 

Toni waits patiently for Tony to start as he gathers his thoughts, “So, me and Pepper have decided that it is time to tell everyone about you.” 

Toni scrunched up her nose in confusion, “I thought you already had. I mean you introduced me to the team, remember?” 

“I don’t mean just to the team, little princess.” Tony said picking her up and placing her on his knee. “I mean _everybody_. The whole world.” 

Toni looks up at him in awe, “What do you mean? How on earth are you going to tell the _whole world_?” 

“Well, not the _whole_ world. Just most of it. Everybody who uses Stark products or who knows who Iron Man is, they’re going to know about you.” Tony says, feeling unease at the statement. 

Toni picks up on it, “Why? Do they _have_ to know?” 

“Unfortunately, yes. The press is going to find out sooner or later and it’s better if we stay one step ahead of them. As much as I’d like to…I can’t keep you a secret forever.” Tony says kissing the top of her head. 

Toni muses on it for a minute, “How are you going to tell them?” 

“Well,” Tony readjusts his hold on her and stands, “We’re going to have a press conference. We’re going to invite a whole lot of people with cameras and we’re going to tell them all at once.” 

The two of them head out the door and to the elevator. Toni frowns and mumbles, “That sounds like a lot of people.” 

Tony nods, “There will be, and it’s going to get really loud, but I’m going to be there with you so you don’t have to be scared. They’ll probably try to ask you questions, but you don’t have to answer them if you don’t want to.” 

When they reach the dining room, they are greeted by Steve, Thor, and Bruce already sitting at the table. The two Starks sit with them and Tony makes conversation until they are joined by Natasha and Clint. 

“So,” Tony starts, “We have an announcement.” 

When he has the rooms attention Tony proceeds to tell them his plan. “Pepper is setting up the conference as we speak. It’ll be in the next day or so.” 

Immediately the group starts talking security details. Tony sits back in slight surprise. He hadn’t really expected all of them to be so involved in the conference. When Tony finally decided to intervene in their planning, they all settle on Steve and Clint going to the conference with them. Everyone else will stay back at the tower. 

Just to stay on the safe side. 

During all of this Toni crawls away to the living area and turns on the tv. She skims through the channels until something catches her eye then she takes a pillow and snuggles back into the couch to watch. She feels incredibly nervous about what her father told her. So much so that she doesn’t notice the looming shadow over her. 

She jumps a bit when Thor settles into the couch next to her. Steve, Clint, and Tony are all finalizing their plans and everyone else goes about their own business. Thor smiles down at Toni, “Your father plans to announce you to Midgard soon.” 

Toni nods and stares up at him. Thor leans back and stares at the tv, “I remember the stories my parents told me of the day they announced my birth to Asgard.” 

Thor proceeds to launch into a set of stories and Toni is soon enthralled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so late, but I've felt so uninspired about this story. I won't give up though :) Thanks for sticking with me.


	12. Chapter 12

She was wearing a dark blue dress with ruffles. It matched the suit Tony was wearing. Standing behind a big white curtain, Toni was as pale as a ghost. Steve felt for her, remembering the first few times he had been on stage as Captain America. At least he had had backup dancers. 

Only he and Happy were allowed backstage right now, after escorting Toni in through a side entrance while Tony distracted everyone up front. Clint was on a second level balcony overlooking the whole room. Steve could hear Tony now addressing the crowd of paparazzi and journalists. 

Questions were being hurled at him left and right. Was this about the latest amount of property damage Iron Man had caused? Was he releasing the suit to the government? Was this about his break up with Pepper? New inventions? 

Tony was quickly growing tired of the questions. He raised his hands, “As you all know, I called you here for a very special announcement.” 

Steve could feel the tension build, like right before a bomb is set to explode. Here it comes…

“I have a daughter.” 

Just like that, simple and short. The ‘bomb’ did indeed explode. People launched out of their chairs and Steve didn’t think the flashes could get any brighter. People were screaming questions and accusations. Through the part in the curtain Steve could see Tony trying to shush the crowd. 

“If you’d all sh- quiet down, I’ll introduce her to you.” He teased. 

The yelling abated but the murmuring that was left was almost worse. Photographer’s struck their pose, cameras at the ready as Tony motioned to the curtain. That was Toni’s cue but the little girl had frozen rock solid. 

Steve knelt down to her level, “Don’t worry. We got your back. If you get to overwhelmed just say so, we’ll get you out of here.” 

Toni nodded sharply once, not daring to open her mouth and speak. By this time Tony had walked over to the curtain to see what was stalling her. His hand came through the part in the curtain and after a second Toni grasped it and was led out onto the stage. 

The roar returned and when Steve had thought the flashes couldn’t get any brighter he had not meant that as a challenge. 

When the camera’s slowed down, Tony dared to hoist Toni up onto his hip and walk over to the podium. “Guys, this is my daughter Toni. With an ‘i’.” 

“Who’s the mother!?” Someone shouted. 

“All that matters is that her mother has passed and I’m her guardian now.” Tony answered deftly. 

Tony answered all kinds of questions while it seemed Toni was clinging on for dear life. It wasn’t long before the hard questions came though. 

“Aren’t you putting her in danger coming out like this?” 

“Are you gonna quit being Iron Man?” 

“What about your enemies?” 

“Where will she go to school?” 

It began to look as though Tony was getting tired of the interrogation and he kept glancing at Toni. Steve was proven right when after a lame excuse, Tony called it quits and walked off stage. 

The two Tony’s are rushed off to a waiting car. A separate one picks up Steve and Clint around back. 

Back at the tower, they catch up to them in the garage. Toni is sound asleep on Tony’s shoulder. 

“I think the adrenaline must have worn off because she conked out half way here.” Tony smiles, but there is a hint of nervousness there that Steve senses. 

Inside the elevator Jarvis informs them that the first newsflash has hit the internet. 

Steve stops himself from following Tony into Toni’s bedroom and instead goes with Clint to the commons floor where the rest of the team is waiting. 

XKXKXKXKXKXKXKXKXKXKX

Tony lays his daughter out on the bed and sits in the chair he had had placed next to her. He rubs both hands through his hair. The press conference had been going as well as could be expected and Toni had been rightfully scared. Maybe a bit more scared than other children would have been. 

But what happened while she was in his arms is what had him worried. Toni had started muttering to herself. Most of what she said was lost while he was answering questions, but what he could hear just didn’t make sense. 

_“Why…why…they’re so angry...so excited...Why?”_

_“She’ll never let it go…her dad was like Mommy…”_

_“He’s doesn’t want to lose his job…”_

When her eyes had glazed over Tony had made the decision to leave. In the car she had complained of a headache and practically passed out. The inherent sense that something was wrong instilled him with a fear he couldn’t describe. But if something _was_ wrong, what on earth could it be? 

He didn’t notice his phone ringing until the fourth ring. He didn’t bother looking at the caller I.D. and instead brought the phone directly to his ear. A mistake, he immediately found out as a familiar voice nearly knocked him out of his chair. 

“Rhodey! Buddy! How are you?” Tony says cheerily as he steps from the room. 

“Don’t you ‘buddy’ me, Stark!” Rhodey hisses, “Isn’t there something you, just so happened, to forget to tell me? Wait, no, let me tell _you_. You have a daughter?! And _I_ have to find out from the _news_?!”

“Well you were out of country. I fully intended to tell you. When you got back.” Tony insisted. 

“ _Oh_ , I _see_. _Well_ , consider yourself forewarned. I’m catching the next flight.” Rhodey grunted. 

“Now, Rhodey, don’t do anything rash.” Tony smirked. 

Rhodey is quiet for a second, “So, what’s she like?” 

Tony leans his head against the wall, “Timid. Sweet.” 

Rhodey snorts, “So, the exact opposite of you. Good. God knows we couldn’t handle two of you.” 

A sound from inside Toni’s room alerts him to the fact that she is awake. He quickly says goodbye to a stuttering Rhodey and goes back in just in time to see the bathroom door slam shut. 

Worried he knocks and presses an ear to the door, “Princess?” 

The faucet is running but he can hear Toni retching over it. The door is locked. “Toni? What’s wrong?” 

When she doesn’t answer, Tony orders Jarvis to unlock the door and he rushes in. Toni is sitting in front of the toilet with her head resting on the rim. Her blue dress crumpled around her knees. She eyes him wearily. Tony approaches her cautiously and kneels beside her, “You ok, Princess?” 

Toni tries for a smile, “My head hurts but I’ll be alright.” 

Tony carries her back to bed once he’s certain she’s through. She changes into a pair of pale yellow pajamas and gets under the covers. Even though it is still early in the afternoon, Tony decides he is not the person to argue healthy sleeping habits. 

Toni plays absently with a stuffed horse, “I’ve never been in a room with that many people before.” 

Tony looks down at his hands, “You did fine. I’m really proud of you for holding it together.” 

Toni frowns at him, “Why are you sad?” 

Tony shakes his head, “I’m not sad, I’m just…just worried.” 

“About what?” Toni ponders out loud. 

“You, Princess.” Tony explained. “Do you remember what happened at the press conference?” 

Toni thought for a moment, “I just remember feeling very…overwhelmed.” 

Tony nodded, “But do you remember…what you said?” 

Toni shakes her head. 

“What about your nightmares? Do you remember anything about them?” Tony questions. 

Toni stares up at the ceiling, “I’m in space…and there’s a man. I don’t know who he is…but he’s in a lot of pain…and he’s very, very angry.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this far. I'm not giving up on this story, but I'm still quite uninspired and only work on it in between chapters of my story, Mudd.
> 
> Also would you please recommend some more tags? Or should I leave it as is?


	13. Chapter 13

The next few days were nothing but turning away journalists and news agencies reporting from in front of Avengers Tower. There was hardly anything on television besides ‘Stark’s Daughter’ either.

It was unsettling to Toni to see herself on TV. Pictures of her were everywhere. 

Tony’s phone was ringing off the hook. Eventually he turned it off. What he hadn’t expected, though maybe a little part of him did, was for the government to immediately call him out as a bad father. 

So what if he was inexperienced? So, yeah, maybe he had been a bit wild before, but there were 15 year olds out there having babies and if they were approved good parents, why was he so different? 

Then again, they weren’t superheroes with loads of enemies either. 

_Ugh_. Tony leaned back in his chair and threw down the tools he was holding. Bruce was in the lab with him and he raised an eyebrow at Tony’s outburst. “Rough day?” 

Tony huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. “How can they call me a bad father without giving me a chance?” 

Bruce turned back to his work, “They’ll say anything to criticize you right now. This is just like the time you came out as Iron Man. They want to see you waver.” 

Tony grunts his agreement. He goes to pick up a wrench when the door whooshes open. 

“Ok, so I didn’t catch the next flight. But I came as soon as I could.” Rhodey says as he unceremoniously places his briefcase down on a table near the door. 

“Rhodey!” Tony exclaims and gets to his feet. 

Rhodey shakes Tony’s hand and turns to Bruce, “Dr. Banner. Nice to see you again.” 

Bruce shakes his hand and returns the pleasantries. Rhodey claps his hands, “So, where’s little Toni? I see you have already made adjustments.” He says motioning to the easel in the corner. 

Tony huffs out a laugh, “You wouldn’t believe. Anyways, Princess is upstairs. Wanna go meet her?” 

“Absolutely.” Rhodey agrees and the two of them leave the lab and make their way to the elevator. 

Once inside Rhodey crosses his arms and laughs quietly. Tony copies the movement and mutters a suspicious ‘what?’ 

“Out of the two of us, I would _never_ had guessed you’d be the family man before me.” Rhodey grins and steps off the elevator into the common room. 

“You and me both.” Tony whispers to himself. 

It doesn’t take a moment to spot Toni engrossed in another tale being exuberantly spun by Thor. Tony coughs and Thor notices Rhodey. “Colonel Rhodes! What a pleasant surprise!” 

Rhodey nods his greeting, “Same to you.” 

“Well, I assume you have come to meet our little princess. Toni, I will finish this story another time.” Thor pats Toni on the head and takes his leave. 

Toni looks only vaguely put out but stands and shakes hands with Rhodey anyways. Tony introduces them, “This is Toni. Princess this is Colonel James Rhodes. But I call him Rhodey.” 

Toni stares up at them and smiles weakly, “You are friends?” 

“Best friends.” Tony says. 

Toni nods and looks back to where she saw Thor disappear to. “Can I go finish my story now?” 

Tony laughs and ushers her along, “Sure thing Princess.” 

Toni runs out of the room. Rhodey shakes his head, “She looks just like you.” 

“So I’ve heard.” Tony acknowledges. “Did you have a hard time getting inside?” 

Rhodey laughs, “Did I! Those reporters are ruthless.” 

Tony groans, “They’re a pain in the ass.” 

Tony and Rhodey sit on the couch facing the TV. Rhodey side eyes Tony, “So what about her mom? Is it true that she’s dead?” 

Tony nods, “She was a model. Toni’s mother and grandfather both died in a car crash about a month and a half ago.” 

The two of them talk for a while before Rhodey has to leave again. Tony gets into the elevator with him but exits on his and Toni’s bedrooms floor. 

Tony is kind of sad to see him go. While he was talking to Rhodey he could forget his worries about Toni. He sinks back into thinking about what she had told him the night after the press conference. So lost in thought is he, that he completely misses and runs into Steve. 

Steve blinks down at him, “Are…you alright?” 

Tony rolls his eyes, “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” 

They stand in front of each other awkwardly for a moment. Steve, always smarter than Tony gives him credit for, go straight for the heart of the matter, “Is this about Toni?” 

Tony stares up at Steve in shock, “What makes you think this is about her?” 

“So there is something wrong. You’ve been acting off ever since the press conference.” Steve crosses his arms and crowds into Tony’s space. 

Tony weighs the pros and cons of telling Steve his worries about Toni. He has a niggling feeling in the back of his mind that this is something much bigger than expected. But he doesn’t want to bother Steve. Then again two heads are better than one. 

Tony thinks about it for a bit too long. Steve leans back and looks at him with sad eyes, “Stark, I just want to help.” 

Tony makes the hard decision. He grabs Steve’s arm and guides him into Toni’s room. Once he is sure no one is around he tells Jarvis to seal the room. Steve looks vaguely worried. 

Tony sighs and crosses his arms, “I think something…may be wrong with Toni.” 

Steve sits down on the edge of Toni’s bed and motions for Tony to continue. Tony starts pacing, “She’s had nightmares every night since she’s been here.” 

Once he starts he can’t seem to stop. He tells Steve everything about Toni’s nightmares, the migraine, the incident at the press conference and what she told him afterwards. He even tells him about the scar on her back. 

When he’s done he collapses into his chair and places his head in his hands, “I don’t know what to do for her. I don’t even think I know what is wrong.” 

Steve stares at the floor for a moment, lost in his own memories. “With this level of abuse in her past…it sounds like PTSD.” 

It feels like for a second, the air is knocked out of Tony’s lungs. “But she’s only seven…”

“It can happen to anybody, young or old.” Steve turns to face him. “Tony, you’ll have to think about getting her in to see a psychiatrist.” 

Tony groans, “If the press gets wind of this.” 

“I’ve seen what it can do to people when it goes untreated. Believe me, you don’t want her to go through that.” Steve pleads. 

Tony nods and stares down at his shoes for a moment. “Thank you, Steve.” 

Steve stands and claps Tony on the shoulder, “Hey, if you need anything…I-We all want nothing more than to help.” 

A small smile flits across Tony’s face, “Don’t get too sentimental on me, Cap.” 

Steve rolls his eyes and leaves. Tony sits and thinks for a while. Something is eating at him and he finds himself desperately hoping that PTSD is _all_ that is wrong with his daughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a treat! I've been in a writing mood and spit out another chapter! Now onto Mudd!


	14. Chapter 14

Toni stares up at the old wrinkled man before her and wrinkles her nose. He looks like the kind of man that often yells for children to get off his lawn. Tony places a hand on her head and makes her look up at him. “Be nice.” 

The man bends down to her level, “My name is Tobias Wilford. What is yours?” 

“Toni Cha’Kwaina Stark.” 

“That is a lovely name.” Mr. Wilford says and stands back up. “Why don’t you show me your room?” 

Toni looks to her father, who nods at her. Slightly reluctant, she leads the man to her bedroom. The man takes the chair from in front of her desk and places it at the foot of her bed. He motions for her to sit on the bed. 

Toni does so. Wilford holds up a clipboard and takes a pen out of his jacket. “Now, Miss Stark, do you know why I am here?” 

Toni shakes her head. 

Wilford nods, “I am a child psychologist.” 

When Toni shows no sign of recognition the man continues, “It means I study the way children think and act. Your father has hired me to…evaluate you.” 

Toni frowns, feeling very confused. Mr. Wilford begins to ask her questions. Some are easy and some are not. The hard ones make her think and she doesn’t really like to think about it. He asks her questions for an hour before standing up, shaking her hand, and leaving her room. 

Just outside her door she can hear Mr. Wilford and her father talking in hushed voices. She feels tired and crawls up to the head of the bed. 

After a while, Tony comes in and sits in his usual chair. “How’s it going?” 

Toni shrugs more interested in why her daddy feels so sad. 

Tony sighs, “What did you think of Mr. Wilford?” 

Toni thinks for a minute, “He’s nice, even though he doesn’t look it. Very calm. He asks a lot of questions.” 

Tony nods and pets her hair, “Well kiddo…it looks like he is going to put you on some medicine.” 

“For what?” Toni asks. 

“To help you with your nightmares, and so you won’t be sad.” Tony leans back and crosses his arms, “I’ll expect you to take it every night.” 

Toni’s eyes widen, “Is it liquid?” 

Tony crooks an eyebrow, “No, a pill.” 

Toni calms, “Ok. I can do that.” 

Tony tucks her in to bed and lets her take a nap. When Toni wakes up, her father is gone and she stares at the ceiling for a solid five minutes trying to decide what to do. 

Eventually she gets up and exercises for a while. Practicing the moves Natasha has taught her so far. Then she decides to take a bath. 

The tub in her bathroom is enormous. The bathroom is all in blacks and greys and whites, just like her bedroom. Daddy has installed some step stools for her to reach everything. 

Toni loves bathes and showers and water in general. Often she can take up to two hours in the bathroom. The first time she had done it, her dad had come in to check if she was ok when Jarvis alerted him to her extra long shower. 

She explained that showers or baths like this were a luxury. Back home in the trailer, where she and her mom had lived on the reservation, the bathrooms were small. They also didn’t always have running water or electricity because momma would forget to pay the bills. Or sometimes just didn’t pay them on purpose so she had enough money to pay for drugs. 

Toni remembered creating her own shower with the neighbors water hose and showering with a flashlight. 

Her confessions had made her daddy really sad and he hadn’t said a word about her bathing time since. 

So she fills the tub and sinks into the hot water with a smile. As she soaks she closes her eyes and sinks below the surface of the water with nothing but her nose above the water. When everything is quiet and she can let her mind relax. Meditation her grandmother had called it. 

She nearly doses off it is so peaceful. Eventually though she surfaces and turns on the bathroom TV. _Who had ever heard of a TV in a bathroom?_ Once she finds something nice to watch she turns on the Jacuzzi feature in the tub and settles back. 

Toni watches two hours of TV shows before a knock on the door catches her attention. It’s her dad, she knows. She jumps out of the tub and streaks across the room to where a huge fluffy towel is laid out. She then opens the door. 

Tony is standing just outside the door and smirks at her. He holds out a white paper bag. Toni wipes her bangs to one side and takes the package with one hand. “What is it?” 

“Your prescription. These are the pills you’re going to start taking.” Tony says and watches as she peeks in the bag. 

Toni walks across the room and settles on to her bed staring down at the two orange bottles in her hand. “Momma used to have bottles like these.” 

Tony winces and rubs at the back of his neck. He sits next to her and takes the bottles from her hand. “You know, your mother…” He struggles for words to say. 

He gets an unwavering stare from Toni before she nods and places a hand on his wrist. “Momma was sick. But…not in the same way as I am sick.” 

Tony puts the bottles in his pocket as he stands, “You’re so smart.” 

Toni has him turn around and she gets dressed. When she is done she pulls at his hand, “Can you help me put my hair up?” 

Tony looks from her damp hair and the brush he can see sitting on her dresser. “Maybe I should go get Natasha…”

Toni shrinks, “No, no, I can do it.” 

Tony waves his hands around, “I’d love too!” 

Toni’s mood lightens immediately and she goes to the dresser and pulls out a package of hair ties. She grabs the brush and hops back to the bed. Tony sits behind her and takes the brush and a purple hair tie from the package. Slowly he begins to brush her hair. 

“You have to start from the bottom.” Toni whispers. 

“Ah.” Tony says and corrects his mistake. 

Tony winces when his daughter hisses in pain at the first tangle. Gingerly he brushes through it. Eventually he gets the hang of it and brushes her hair till it’s dry. Then he starts on trying to put it up in a ponytail. 

The door opens and Steve stares at them, Tony with a hair tie hanging from his teeth and Toni with her bangs brushed back. Both of them stare back and Steve smothers a smile. 

Slowly Tony finishes the ponytail. It’s a bit lopsided and a piece or two escapes, but it’s up and Tony feels he deserves a pat on the back for that achievement. 

Toni fixes her bangs, “Hi Cap. What brings you here?” 

Steve leans against the door jam. “We haven’t seen either of you all day, so everybody sent me to check on you.” 

Tony stands and walks up to Steve, “I took your advice…”

From there anything he says to Steve, Toni can’t hear. Tony’s cell phone rings and he excuses himself to leave the room. Steve walks over to the window near Toni’s desk. He’s carrying a notebook and Toni curiously asks what he’s holding. 

Steve turns and smiles at her, “Oh this? It’s a sketchbook.” 

“Do you draw?” Toni questions. 

Steve nods and comes over to sit next to her. He flips open the book and hands it to Toni. She ooh’s and awe’s over each picture. “I hear you draw as well.” 

Toni nods and gets up and walks over to her desk. “I draw sceneries and people…I’m not good at animals though.” 

She takes a stack of papers out of a drawer and skips back to sit next to him. She hands him the stack of papers and Steve pats her shoulder as he begins to flip through her pictures. It’s the third picture that draws his eyebrows together. Slowly a cold chill travels down his spine and Steve stands, staring at the drawing in his hand. 

Toni looks up at him worriedly, “Steve?” 

At that moment Tony walks back in, freezing at the look on Steve’s face. “What happened?” 

Steve finally looks back up at Tony, “We have a problem.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a boring chapter, but I honestly couldn't think of anything else. Hopefully the next chapter will get things moving.


	15. Chapter 15

Thor looks up from the tablet he is holding when Tony rushes into the room followed closely by Steve. “Good afternoon friends.” He greets them. 

Tony seems to be shaking slightly, “Can you tell me what these look like to you?” 

Tony hands Thor a stack of papers and, raising an eyebrow, Thor looks through them. “These appear to be drawings of my brother. What of it?” 

Steve and Tony share a look. Thor frowns at the two of them, a sense of foreboding filling the air, “Who is the artist?” 

“My daughter.” Tony answers lowly. “Toni drew those. You know about her nightmares right?” 

Thor nods, it hadn’t really been a secret among the group that Toni didn’t sleep well. Tony continues, “She says she dreams about him even though she doesn’t know who he is.” 

Thor’s frown deepens, “Could she have seen pictures of him somewhere?” 

Steve shakes his head, “There was very little video footage of him on the news around the attack. Even if she did see him, that wouldn’t explain the nightmares.” 

“How secure is Loki?” Tony asks, “Could this be his doing?” 

“The prison my brother is held in is the best in Asgard.” Thor begins, “But…my brother’s magic is very powerful.” 

“How would he even know about her?” Tony says helplessly. 

“Rest assured Stark, I will get to the bottom of this. I will go to Asgard immediately and question Loki.” Thor turns and walks to the balcony. He is soon engulfed in the light of the Bifrost and disappears. 

Tony runs his hands through his hair, “I need a drink.” He says already making his way to the bar. 

Steve grabs his arm and turns him around, “No, what you need is to be with your daughter.” 

Tony only struggles minimally as Steve steers him to the elevator. “I don’t think I can talk about this right now.” 

Steve nods, “I’ll tell the others. Just focus on little Toni for now.” 

With that said, Steve claps him on the shoulder and gets off the elevator on the gym floor. Tony presses the number for his and Toni’s floor. When he gets off he finds Toni waiting just outside the elevator doors. 

“Did I do something wrong?” She asks nervously. 

Tony feels tears prick behind his eyes but puts on a smile, “No honey, you didn’t do anything wrong.” 

Toni stares up at him and raises her arms to be picked up. Tony does so and walks back to her room. He sits in his chair with her in his lap and holds on. Toni tucks her head under his chin and fingers at the arc reactor under Tony’s shirt. After Tony feels like he has his composure under control he asks, “Can you tell me about him? The man in your dreams?” 

Toni is quiet a moment, “He’s all mixed up.” 

“What do you mean?” Tony questions. 

“Like, he’s really, really angry but he’s also kinda scared too. And he’s in a lot of pain.” Toni murmurs. 

“How do you know that? Does he speak to you?” Tony tries to sound lighthearted. 

“I don’t think he knows I am there. And I’ve always been able to tell.” Toni places her hands in her lap. 

“Tell what?” 

“What someone is feeling. Sometimes even what they are thinking if it is really strong” Toni says though she doesn’t look up, “It used to make Momma real mad when I would bring it up.” 

Tony catches her gaze, “You know that I’m not going to get mad at you, right?” 

Toni watches him for a second, her hesitation hurts. “Yes. You are different than she was.” 

That brings a small smile to Tony’s lips. “I like to think so.” 

“Oh, you are! You’re nothing like Momma. You take care of me and love me and do good things.” Toni smiles at him. 

The tears are back and Tony laughs a bit to keep them at bay. Toni grips his face in both hands and kisses his cheek, “You don’t have to be scared, Daddy. Everything will be alright.” 

Tony smirks, “Who said anything about being scared? But you’re right! Everything is going to be fine.” 

He proceeds to tickle her and grins evilly at her peals of laughter. Inside he prays he didn’t just lie to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry so short! I'm working on bettering the next chapters!


	16. Chapter 16

Thor struts with purpose toward the cell that holds his brother. He has Toni’s drawings tucked under one arm. He feels…he doesn’t know what he feels. He’s worried about his friend’s child. A child who he had grown quite fond of. He hated to think any kind of magic would affect her so negatively. 

He also hated to think it was anything other than magic. At least if it was magic it could be fixed. 

He barely pauses at the corner of the cell, and takes a deep breath. Loki is sitting against a wall, pretending to read. 

“Loki, I must speak with you.” Thor states. 

“So glad you could finally visit, brother.” Loki closes his book and side eyes Thor. “What could you possibly wish to speak about?” 

“I want you to explain to me why you are tormenting the young Stark.” Thor exclaims. 

Loki sighs, “I have no idea who you are referring to.” 

“You know exactly. The Man of Iron’s child, you are tormenting her dreams. I want to know why! What are you planning?!” Thor demands. 

Loki rolls his eyes, “I am planning nothing, brother. I know of no child.” 

Thor presses the drawings against the force-field of the cell. “Explain these then. Explain why you haunt this child’s dreams so vividly.” 

Loki comes closer and studies the pictures, “My magic cannot travel beyond this cell. Did you ever consider that it isn’t an outside force causing the child’s visions?” 

Thor collects the pictures and straightens them in his hands, “What do you mean?” 

Loki smirks, “Maybe nothing is affecting the girl but her _own_ magic.” 

Thor nods, “This is something I had not considered.” 

Thor turns to walk away but returns to say, “If I find out you are lying and have been tormenting her-”

Loki raises his hands, “I know, I know.” 

Thor harrumphs and walks away. Loki watches him until he is out of sight. _So, Stark has a child, hmm?_

XKXKXKXKXKXKXKXKXKXKX

Toni collapses on her bed, exhausted after a workout session with Natasha. She rolls over onto her stomach, and reaches towards the radio set on her bedside table. She sets it to a country station, the only one she can find, and pillows her head in her hands. The radio is a new addition to the room. Along with a few other electronics plugged to their chargers. 

She wonders what her dad is doing. Ever since the day she told him about her dreams, he’s been tucked away in his lab, only coming out at night to put her to bed. Everyone seems to be walking on eggshells around her and she can’t figure out why. 

Anger and sadness fill the air and make her feel even more tired than usual. While exercising this morning she had been able to put everything out of her mind, but now it was coming back as the adrenaline left her system. 

She was especially worried about Mr. Barton. He had been particularly tense for the past day or two. Why had her dreams caused so much trouble? Was it something to do with the man? Everything seemed to center around him, what could it possibly mean? 

She was beginning to get a headache. She rolled over once again and put the towel around her neck over her eyes. Before long she was asleep. 

She dreamed of space and endless darkness. The feeling of helplessness and regret overwhelmed her. She could see the man once again. He was falling through space. She could hear a voice screaming out from above. Toni looks up, but before she can get a look at who is screaming, something wakes her. 

She groans as she is pulled from sleep. She yanks the towel away and glares at the ceiling. Wondering what woke her, she gets up and goes to the window. She just gets a glimpse of a bright light disappearing into the sky. 

Toni looks up, “Jarvis?” 

“Yes, Miss Stark?” Jarvis answers promptly. 

“Something woke me up and I saw a light. What happened?” Toni questions. 

“Thor has returned from Asgard.” Jarvis answers. 

“Oh.” Toni decides to welcome Thor home and goes to leave the room. She opens the door and pauses, “Thank you, Jarvis.” 

“You’re welcome, Miss Stark.” 

A quick ride in the elevator and she heads towards the balcony. When she gets close to the balcony she hears her father saying her name. She stops and listens. 

Thor is talking now in a low voice, “Loki claims to know nothing. I have addressed our concerns with the validity of his cell. His magic cannot reach here.” 

Her father sighs, “I was afraid of that. At least if it was him we could have fixed it.” 

Steve’s voice picks up next, “Did you find out anything else?” 

Thor pauses, “Loki mentioned something quite intriguing. Is it possible…that young Toni has magic of her own?” 

Toni blinks and frowns. _Magic?_ She couldn’t do magic. 

Her father finally speaks, “After you left she told me…she says she can tell what people are feeling. I’ve been doing some research. I think…have you ever heard of anything called an empath?”


	17. Chapter 17

Toni’s nose chooses this time to sneeze. The three men look in her direction and sheepishly, Toni eases into sight. “I’m sorry.” 

Tony walks over and picks her up, “You don’t have to apologize.” 

“What’s going on?” Toni asks bluntly. 

Tony grasps for an easy answer, “To be honest, we really don’t know yet.” 

Toni puts her index finger in her mouth, “Something to do with me?” 

Tony plucks her hand away from her face, “Yes, we think it is something to do with you.” 

Thinking for a moment, Toni asks, “Will you tell me when you find out what you are looking for?” 

“You’ll be the first to know.” Steve answers her before Tony has the chance. 

With that Tony sits Toni down to watch TV and the three men gather at the table. Tony has Jarvis page Bruce, Natasha, and Clint. While they wait on them to get there, Tony makes coffee. 

Soon all the Avengers are gathered around their dinner table and Thor relates to them what he found in Asgard. Clint seems greatly relieved that Loki is not involved. 

“So, you think Toni is an empath?” Steve directs this question to Tony, who nods. 

“According to my research, I believe it’s possible.” Tony answers. 

“What exactly is an empath?” Clint inquired. 

“An empath is someone who can feel the emotions of others.” Bruce responded, “That’s just scratching the surface of it. I’ve heard reports of empaths that could read minds and recall memories of others.” 

“She did say she could tell what people were thinking if it was really strong.” Tony replies. 

“Does she know that she is an empath?” Natasha speaks up. 

“I don’t think she knows what is going on.” Tony rubs his hands over his face. “Any more than we do.” 

“So what does this mean for little Toni?” Clint directs this question to the group. 

Everyone is silent as they think it over. Tony is the first to answer the question, “Well, first thing we need to do is actually tell little princess what we’ve found out.” 

“We should also test her abilities. Bruce you think you can handle that?” Natasha inquires. 

“Of course.” Bruce replies, ideas already formulating in his mind. “Tony, tell me more about what you’ve witnessed that you think has to do with her abilities.” 

Tony thinks for a minute and then tells the group about everything that happened at the press conference. After a moment Steve speaks up, remembering the time she had ‘sensed’ he was there when she couldn’t have known. 

Intrigued, Bruce begins to take notes on a tablet. “I’m going to go set up some equipment in the lab. I’ll tell Jarvis to get you when I’m ready to run the tests.” 

With that said, Bruce, still furiously typing away at his tablet, disappears into the elevator. The others continue to discuss the turn in events as Tony gets up and walks to where Toni is lost in Fred Astaire’s dance prowess. 

He sits down next to her and she pulls her gaze away from the screen a bit reluctantly. “Did you figure it out?” She asks. 

Tony shakes his head, “Not yet. We’re hoping you’ll go through a few tests for us. Do you think you can do that?” 

Toni shrugs, “Tests for what?” 

Her father pauses, “You see, Toni, I- we think it is a possibility that you are an empath.” 

Toni’s eyes grow a little wider, “What’s that?” 

Tony explains the definition to her. She tilts her head and says seriously, “Well, that does sound about right.” 

“Bruce is downstairs coming up with some test for you to take so we can find out for sure.” Tony remarks. 

Toni nods her assent and turns her attention back to the movie. 

As it turns out, it takes Bruce until the next day to get everything ready. 

Early in the morning, Jarvis wakes up the residences of the tower. They eat breakfast and then forge their way to Bruce’s lab. 

Toni is rightfully a little nervous, but Bruce reassures her that none of the tests will hurt. He sets her in one corner of the lab and hooks her up to an EEG machine all the while explaining that it just reads her brain waves. 

He starts off showing her pieces of paper with ink stains on them. She tells him what she sees and he makes a few notes. 

Then he turns her around to face the wall and puts earphones on her. “This is why I called all of you here.” Bruce says as he asks Tony to leave the room and walk to the end of the hall, then come back after thirty seconds. 

As soon as he is gone, Bruce asks through the earphones who has left the room. Toni’s response is immediate, “Daddy.” 

He repeats the process with each person, and each time Toni accurate predicts who was asked to leave the room. They do this for nearly thirty minutes, and Toni never gets it wrong. 

For the next test, Bruce simply sits in front of her and asks, “What am I thinking?” 

Everyone holds their breath. Toni looks at him quizzically. Then she really stares at him. “You’re excited…but you’re also kinda sad. You miss someone…and there’s a bit of anger but it’s really deep.” 

It’s quiet and then Bruce chuckles, “I think that’s more what I’m feeling rather than thinking but it’s close enough.”


	18. Chapter 18

After the test results are examined and Bruce is finally able to give them all a conclusive answer, everyone goes their separate ways with the same thought in their heads. What did this mean for little Toni? 

Tony leaves his daughter to her own devices and goes to the bar upstairs. He pours a drink and wanders out on landing pad. Looking out over the city he finally allows himself to just _think_ …

What was he going to do? 

How was he supposed to handle this all by himself? 

He stays outside for a long time and doesn’t come up with any answers. He finally heads inside to refill his drink and is greeted instead with the sight of Steve standing behind the bar holding a steaming mug. When he doesn’t come any closer, Steve gestures to a second mug sitting on the counter-top that Tony hadn’t noticed. 

Tony finally joins Steve at the bar and studies the mug offered to him. It turns out to be hot chocolate with marshmallows in it. Tony raises a questioning eyebrow in Steve’s direction. 

Steve shrugs, “You looked cold.” 

Tony hadn’t recognized he was shivering until now. Replacing his empty glass with the mug he graciously takes a sip. Sighing, he stares down at the melting marshmallows and thanks Steve for his kindness. 

Steve stares at him for a moment and then sets down his half empty mug. He places both hands on the counter-top and sends Tony a pleading look, “Talk to me.” 

Tony sighs and sits on a bar stool, “I don’t know what you want me to say.” 

Steve moves around till he’s sitting beside him, “Whatever you want to say.” 

Tony rubs a hand across his forehead, “It’s just…why couldn’t this…why couldn’t I have this one thing? Why couldn’t this have been easy?” 

Steve sips from his drink, “Easy, huh? I don’t think any parent has ever had to raise a child and come away saying it was easy.” 

“I know, I know.” Tony agrees and then says in a small voice, “It’s just…why does all this stuff happen to _us_?” 

“I don’t think anyone can know the answer to that one.” Steve scratches the back of his neck, “But I think...I think there is a reason for everything. The two of you are only going to grow stronger from all of this.” 

“I don’t know if I can…If I’m…” Unable to finish his sentence Tony just stares at his hands resting in his lap. 

Steve rests a hand on Tony’s shoulder. When he gets Tony’s attention, Steve says assuredly, “Tony, don’t ever think for one second that you are alone in this.” 

Tony starts to look away but Steve doesn’t let him, “I’m serious. You have the team. I can say without a doubt that there isn’t a one of us that wouldn’t do anything we could to help you or little Toni. All you gotta do is say the word.” 

Tony doesn’t look away from Steve’s gaze for an uncomfortably long time but Steve matches the look head on. There’s an unspoken _**‘I’m** here for you.’_ floating in the air between them that neither one of them is willing to touch upon. 

Finally Tony nods and looks embarrassedly at his drink. He stumbles when he stands and gathers the mug in his hands, “I’ll just…go heat this up.” 

He turns to leave but pauses long enough to stutter out a “Thank you.” before he disappears into the elevator. 

Steve takes his own drink back downstairs as well, fighting a rising blush all the way. He thinks the coast is clear in the living area and no one will notice his flustered appearance while he reheats his drink. But when he rounds the corner of the kitchen counter he finds Toni standing on a footstool near the sink. 

She waves at him, and nearly chokes herself on a mouthful of orange slices as she tries to great him. 

Steve chuckles and pats her on the back as he passes her on the way to the microwave. He’s starting to feel more at ease when he notices that she is staring at him. 

The staring part isn’t really new but the little grin is a bit disconcerting. She looks far to mischievous, he thinks as he takes his cup from the microwave. His heart jumps to his throat when he turns back around to find Toni standing directly behind him. She laughs into her curled fist while Steve grips the counters edge, she looks at him knowingly and in a singsong voice calls out into the _thankfully_ empty room, “Steve has a crush~”


End file.
